That Garden Je Ne Sais Quoi

Designer Charlotte Moss brings home five key lessons
from her grand tour of French estates

By

Charlotte Moss

August 27, 2011

In most things French, gardening being no exception, style and artistry are paramount. These characteristics are just as evident in a potager (kitchen garden) as they are the parterres (low, ornamental gardens with paths between the beds) of a chateau—all are executed with equally deft skill.

Photos: Stately French Gardens

Charlotte Moss

Before I visit France each summer I research a group of gardens to visit. Over the last few decades, I've walked through and studied more than 100 chateau gardens, private and public, all of which have lessons that can be translated easily back home, no matter what size garden you have.

From the Côte d'Azur to the Dordogne, here are some of the best examples of those principles, selected from the 15 gardens I visited this year. The most important lesson is to have an overall plan. When designing and furnishing a garden, carefully consider the use of each area. Follow the same guiding principles you use inside your home. Be practical: Material selection drives maintenance. While some formal French gardens may appear severe, it is this same quality that gives them their simplicity—that makes them incredibly pragmatic in the city as well as in the country.

Ah, that je ne sais quoi, the elusiveness of simplicity that we all work so hard to achieve. It's not beyond reach; it just takes thought and planning. As my patient husband remarked recently, "I understand now: box, yew, hornbeam and more box, yew and hornbeam." Exactement.

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